Orlando Meetings: Presentation Summary

This is the summary of a presentation given at the Joint Mathematics
Meetings, January 10-13, 1996, Orlando, Florida.

Devising Channels that Nurture Ingenuity and Creativity
in Mathematics Classes

Original projects and individual journals can challenge students who
are more linguistically oriented, and who crave expression for their ingenuity
and creativity - even in a mathematics course - to develop a greater
understanding of and appreciation for mathematics. Projects can be an
invaluable tool for increasing student understanding of course content and
benefit students by helping them develop skill for recognizing everyday
situations to which mathematics can be applied. Also, the joy that creating
an original project can induce in the less mathematically-inclined students
often results in high quality projects being produced by these students.
Journaling can be valuable by freeing students to delve into their
mathematical depths and to discuss various aspects of their approach to
mathematics. This enables students to discuss in private deeper
questions, as well as difficulties which they might be hesitant to discuss in a
classroom setting. Results from journals can be rather dramatic in enabling a
teacher to address in class the root of difficulties that are sometimes not
reached in formal class discussion. Much to my surprise, I have found even more
exciting and enriching the journal entries which I have required to be submitted
via e-mail.